The relationship between psychological empowerment, job satisfaction and organisation commitment in a coal mine

Abstract:

People are with no doubt a companies' most important asset. It is imperative that companies develop their people to unleash the full potential of the company. The future of successful, competitive companies will depend on the work force of that company. The context of the organisation has change from a hierarchical structure to building human capital. This means that organisations need leadership as a vehicle to ensure successful empowerment. Leaders need to access and utilise the potential of their people. To be a respected global enterprise, harnessing talents in applying unique, innovative technologies are needed for companies to excel. <br><br> This study conceptualises empowerment from a psychological and organisational perspective. Empowerment is defined and divided into the categories of leadership empowering behaviour, motivational empowerment (psychological empowerment) and structural empowerment. The psychological perspective measures the four cognitions (meaning, competence, self-determination and impact) that provide employees with a sense of empowerment. The objective of this study is to determine the levels of psychological empowerment, leader empowering behaviour, organisational commitment and job satisfaction. <br><br> A correlation design was used to determine the relationship between the constructs. Data from the sample of 110 employees from two mines was gathered and explained in terms of descriptive statistics. Cronbach alpha coefficient and factor analysis were determined for the measuring instruments and the Pearson correlation was computed. A regression analysis was done to determine to which extend psychological empowerment and leader empowering behaviour predict job satisfaction and organisational commitment. <br><br> The results of the empirical study indicated that there was no significant difference between the scores of the measuring instruments between the two mines. There were significant differences between the scores of the different measuring instruments regarding years of service and work levels. There is a significant relationship between organisational commitment, psychological empowerment, leader empowering behaviour and job satisfaction. Concerning the predictive value of the constructs, the findings indicate that, leader empowering behaviour and psychological empowerment predict job satisfaction and organisational commitment. <br><br> Recommendations on the research results were made. The implications of psychological empowered employees for organisations were discussed. The recommendations focus on management and leader development, career development, career counselling, creating a motivational climate, performance and team development.